Material for cleaning and preparing metal for paint



Patented Nov. 21, 1933 PATENT OFFICE MATERIAL FOR CLEANING AND PREPARING METAL FOB PAINT nowua a. Neilaon, Detroit, Mich, asslgnor to H. E. Westervelt,

South Bend, Ind.

No Drawing. Application March 10. 1931 Serial No. 523,113

24Clalms.

This invention relates to an improved composition for cleaning metal preparatory to coating with paint, lacquer, terial. V

Heretoiore, metal cleaning compositions have contained combined rust removing agents and oil and grease solvents together with suitable body building constituents. Such compositions are usually applied in the form of dilute water solutions which in practice fail to uniformly wet the metal surfaces. In most instances cleaning solutions of this character which have contained effective grease solvents which are entirely mis-.

cible in water have high surface tension characteristics which cause the liquids to collect on the metal surfaces in globules or in stringy. veinlike streaks which stain the metal surfaces.

The main objects of this invention are to provide an improved metal cleaning composition having rust-removing and oil dissolving properties which, when applied in the form of a water solution, forms a uniform film like coating on the surfaces of the metal; to provide a composition of this character which may be marketed in a concentrated form and diluted with water to any desired degree prior to use; to provide substances is a cleaning composition for reducing the surface tension of the solution in which the composition is used; to provide surface tension reducing agents in a concentrated composition of this kind which function satisfactorily under various degrees of dilution of the composition; and to provide ingredients of this character in a metal cleaning composition which do not unduly increase the viscosity of the ultimate solution in which the composition is used.

I have found that when an organic soap of vegetable derivation, such as saponin, is added to metal cleaning compositions containing a rust removing and chloride destroying acid, such as orthophosphoric acid, and an oil and grease solvent, such as mono-butyl ether of ethylene glycol and ethyl methyl ketone or either one of these grease solvents or other ether derivatives of ethylene glycol, the surface tension of a water solution of the composition is materially re-. duced. With concentrated cleaning compounds of this sort, it is customary to dilute such compounds to the desired strength by adding water. When saponin alone is used as the surface tension reducing agent, it must be added in a predetermined proportion with respect to the quan-,- tity of water used in such solution. The necessity of accurately controlling the proportion of saponin with respect to the water conenamel or other finishing ma- 1/ tent'of the working solution of the cleaning composition may be obviated by the addition of a 'mono-carboxylic acid of the olefin series, such as oleic acid, in the process of forming the composition.

A concentrated metal cleaning composition which readily dissolves in water forming a solution having comparatively low surface tension characteristics and which when applied to metal surfaces forms a uniform and continuous film may be produced by combining the following ingredients in the proportions, by weight, specified; although it is to be understood that the proportions given may be varied without departing from my invention.

Per cent 1 by weight orthophosphoric acid 69.5 Mono-butyl ether of ethylene glycol 17. Oleic acid 00.5 7 Saponin 1.0 5 Water 12.

A suflicient quantity of a sugary substance such as dextrine and molasses may be substituted in, place of part of the water to build up the viscosity to the desired degree.

The saponin and desired amount of dextrine and molasses are dissolved in the water and are then added to the phosphoric acid and thoroughly mixed. The mono-butyl ether of ethylene glycol and oleic acid are then added to the mixture.

Part of the mono-butyl ether of ethylene glycol and part of the water may be replaced by monoethyl ether of ethylene glycol 61' the two ether derivatives may be used together in any desired proportion that will leave suiflcient grease solvent to do the work required. The mono-ethyl ether of ethylene glycol, aside from being a cheaper material, afiords the advantage of being more miscible in water and is equally as good a solvent for vegetable oils as is the mono-butyl ether of ethylene glycol. Under certain conditions, as where the oils to be -removed from metal surfaces or dissolved in order that the rust removing acid and rust inhibitor may act on the metal, are mainly vegetable in nature; it is advantageous to replace, at least a part of, the mono-butyl ether of ethylene glycol with the mono-ethyl ether of ethylene glycol. In practice, two forms of the cleaning composition, according to this invention, maybe employed; one of which is to be washed fromthe body that is prepared for painting; and the other is adapted to be wiped off with dry cloths. It is preferred to employ, as the oil solvent, the mono-butyl ether of ethylene glycol in 11 Saponin, which is a soap-like compound ob-- tained from licorice bark or soap tree bark, may be replaced by other organic soaps of vegetable derivation, such as sarsaponin which is obtained from sarsaparilla bark.

In practice, it is sometimes expedient to separately treat metal surfaces so as to remove oil and grease in one operation and to remove the rust and rust promoting compounds I and the chlorides in another operation. When this procedure is followed the metal surfaces may be first washed with a solution containing a grease solvent and then treated with a rust removing solution containing orthophosphoric acid and an organic soap of vegetable derivation such as saponin either alone or with a mono-carboxylic acid of the olefin series, to which a small amount of one of the grease solvents has been added to make it compatible.

Although but several specific embodiments of the invention have herein been set forth, it is understood that various changes in the proportions of the ingredients and in the ingredients themselves may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, as defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A metal cleaning composition including rust removing and oil dissolving agents, and a soaplike glucoside of vegetable derivation.

2. A metal cleaning composition mainly including a water soluble rust removing and rust inhibiting acid and grease solvent, and a comparatively small quantity of a soap-like glucoside of vegetable derivation for controlling the surface tension characteristic of water solution of said composition.

3. A metal cleaning composition including a rust removing and rust inhibiting acid, an oil and grease solvent, and a surface tension reducing agent selected from a group including soaplike glucosides of vegetable derivation and monocarboxylic acids of the olefin series.

4. A metal cleaning composition including orthophosphoric acid and a soap-like glucoside of vegetable derivation the composition being free of oils, waxes and greases.

5. A metal cleaning composition including a grease solvent, a rust removing acid, water and saponin, the composition being free from oils, waxes and greases.

6. A metal cleaning composition including a rust removing acid, a soap-like glucoside of vegetable derivation, and a Wetting agent comprising oleic acid.

'7. A metal cleaning composition including orthophosphoric acid, mono-butyl. ether of ethylene glycol, and saponin.

8. A metal cleaning composition including orthophosphoric acid, mono-butyl ether of ethylene glycol, saponin and a mono-carboxylic acid of the olefin series.

9. A metal cleaning composition including orthophosphoric acid, mono-butyl ether of ethylene glycol, saponin and oleic acid.

10. A metal cleaning composition including a rust removing and rust inhibiting acid, an oil solvent comprising an ether derivative of ethylene glycol, and oleic acid.

11. A metal cleaning composition including a rust removing acid, an oil solvent comprising an ether derivative of ethylene glycol, and saponin.

12. A metal cleaning composition including a rust removing and rust inhibiting acid, an ether derivative of ethylene glycol, and surface tension reducing agents including saponin and oleic acid.

'13. A metal cleaning composition including orthophosphoric acid, mono-butyl ether of ethylene glycol, and oleic acid.

14. A metal cleaning composition including orthophosphoric acid, an ether derivative of ethylene glycol, and a surface tension reducing agent including a soap-like glucoside of vegetable derivation and a mono-carboxylic acid of the olefin series.

15. The method of making a water soluble metal cleaning composition which consists in incorporating together a water soluble rust removing acid, grease solvent, and a mono-carboxylic acid of the olefin series; and adding a solution containing water and a soap-like compound of vegetable derivation.

16. A metal cleaning composition including orthophosphoric acid, ethyl methyl ketone and saponin.

17. A metal cleaning composition including orthophosphoric acid, an ether derivative of ethylene glycol, ethyl methyl ketone and saponin.

18. A metal cleaning composition including orthophosphoric acid, ethyl methyl ketone and oleic acid.

'19. A metal cleaning composition including orthophosphoric acid, an ether derivative of ethylene glycol and ethyl methyl ketone and oleic acid.

20. A metal cleaning composition including orthophosphoric acid, ethyl methyl ketone and saponin and oleic acid.

21. A metal cleaning composition including orthophosphoric acid, an ether derivative of ethylene glycol, ethyl methyl ketone, saponin and oleic acid.

22. A method of removing rust and greases from metal surfaces, which comprises subjecting the surface to the action of a solution of phosphoric acid, mono-butyl ether of ethylene glycol, and an extract of soap bark.

23. A solution for removing rust and grease from metal surfaces comprising phosphoric acid, mono-butyl ether of ethylene glycol, and an extract of soap bark.

24. A method of treating metal surfaces for removing rust and grease comprising subjecting the surfaces to the action of a solution of phosphoric acid, a grease solvent and an extract of soap bark.

HOWARD R. NEILSON. 

